78Deposit of title documents and conveyance

78 Deposit of title documents and conveyance (1) A purchaser who is not in default under an instalment contract may, any time after the contract has been entered into, direct the vendor, at the cost of the purchaser, to deposit with the Public Trustee or a person prescribed by the Minister by notice in the Gazette: (a) the certificate or certificates as to title, or other documents of title, relating to the land the subject of the contract; and (b) a duly executed conveyance of the land in favour of the purchaser.

Law of Property Act 2000 48 (2) On deposit of the conveyance with the Public Trustee or a person prescribed under subsection (1), the conveyance is taken to be delivered by the vendor in escrow pending discharge of the contract by performance or otherwise. (3) A vendor who fails to comply with a direction given under subsection (1) is to be taken to have broken a condition of the contract and the purchaser is entitled to all civil remedies accordingly. (4) If a certificate as to title or other document of title and a conveyance have been deposited with the Public Trustee or a person prescribed under subsection (1), the Public Trustee or the person: (a) must hold the certificate as to title or other document of title and the conveyance in trust and must not, except for the purpose of safekeeping, deliver the certificate or other document and the conveyance to any person until: (i) the time for performance of the contract arrives; (ii) the contract is discharged by performance or otherwise; or (iii) the Court, on the application of the Public Trustee or the person prescribed under subsection (1), the vendor, the purchaser or any other interested person, orders otherwise; and (b) may receive money payable by the purchaser under the contract to be held on trust for the vendor. (5) Nothing in this section applies to an instalment contract if, at the time the contract is made, the land the subject of the contract is subject to an existing mortgage.